The Mayor of Verona caused controversy by telling Mario Balotelli he shouldn’t “provoke” if he wants to avoid racist abuse.

FlavioTosi, who is a member of the anti-immigration LegaNord party, made the comments ahead of Saturday’s Serie A opener Hellas Verona-Milan.

There are fears of racist incidents, as the Verona fans have been punished for this behaviour in the past.

“Will I reassure Balotelli about coming to Verona? There are two aspects here,” noted Tosi on Radio Sportiva.

“One is the fans, the other is the club that has always worked hard to improve the behaviour of the fans other than those four idiots. If someone acts like a cretin, he’ll be in the minority.

“However, if Balotelli provoked people a bit less, then it would be even better. There are many black players, but not all of them stoke the ire of the opposition fans. Most have no problems. Balotelli is very good at making himself unlikeable.”